Module Response
Developmental Psychology
I believe that a webquest is a very good example for students to learn difficult concepts. A webquest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all the information that learners work with comes from the web. A webquest uses technology to create a genuine and meaningful learning project where students work together in groups which allow for them to help each other. A webquest is an active, discovery-oriented learning environment where students interact with their peers which Piaget believes is an important source of cognitive development (Piaget’s Theories of Development webpage). “Vygotsky argues that through interaction, with proficient guidance, children can develop advanced mental processes” (Vygotsky’s Theories of Development webpage). The webquest provides all the resources needed as well as the guidance the children need. Since the students are actively engaged in the webquest their brain is able to store and retrieve information more effectively (Vygotsky’s Theories of Development webpage). I am working on a webquest with my collaboration group that will help first grade students understand the concept that not all children around the world share the same view. We are having them learn about students in other countries. They will work together in groups to discover how they are the same and different then students in the other countries. Then they will use web 2.0 tools to create a meaningful project to share with others in the class. They will create a Mixbook project with the information they found.
Since at this age level the students have not mastered the ability of mental operations, I plan to show them the webquest on a Smartboard while I briefly explain what they are to do. The use of visual aids, while keeping instructions short would most benefit the child in this stage (Woolfolk, A., 2004). I will show them some of the links so they can get a visual of what is expected of them. We plan to use a lot of pictures in the links since they are not strong readers at this point.
Piaget implies that students must not be bored by work that is too simple or left behind by teaching they cannot understand. Therefore a webquest can incorporate the differences in student’s abilities. There can be varying levels of roles in each group.